House leaders say they didn’t have the votes in one of the most heavily lobbied pieces of legislation this session, frustrating and angering advocates.
digital privacy
Posted inBusiness, Nation / World
Your smart light can tell Amazon and Google when you go to bed
Having already amassed a digital record of activity in public spaces, critics say, tech companies are now bent on establishing a beachhead in the home.
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Posted inNation / World, News
How home security cameras are opening the door to privacy invasion
Ding-dong, your doorbell is looking a bit creepy. Ring video doorbells, Nest Hello and other connected security cameras are the fastest-growing home improvement gadgets since garage door openers. These cameras, often built into buzzers, alert your phone when someone is at your door and save footage online. Mine has helped me get deliveries and catch […]
Posted inNation / World
Facebook allegedly offered advertisers special access to users’ data
A key British lawmaker alleged Wednesday that Facebook maintained “whitelisting agreements” that gave select companies preferential access to valuable user data, echoing a key claim from an app developer that has been embroiled in a lawsuit with the social network in a California court. Damian Collins, chairman of a British parliamentary committee that has led […]
Posted inBusiness
Facebook Portal is a $200 video chat camera. Do you trust it?
? The Portal is a sleek new video camera and screen that makes chats with family and friends look great. It has just one problem: It was made by Mark Zuckerberg. On Monday, Facebook unveiled the $200 Portal, the first-ever consumer hardware from the world’s largest social network. The toaster-size gadget, along with a larger […]
Posted inBusiness
Apple CEO Tim Cook says giving up your data for better services is ‘a bunch of bunk’
Apple chief executive Tim Cook urged consumers not to believe the dominant tech industry narrative that the data collected about them will lead to better services. In an interview with “Vice News Tonight” that aired Tuesday, Cook highlighted his company’s commitment to user privacy, positioning Apple’s business as one that stands apart from tech giants […]
Posted inOp-Eds, Perspective, sj-web
Can you benefit if your insurer gains access to your Fitbit data?
Life insurance company John Hancock made a splash last week with the news that soon all of its policies would come bundled with the option to let the company track your fitness – via either a website and app, or through the use of a fitness tracker like an Apple Watch or Fitbit. The move […]
Posted inNation / World
Facebook users still worried about protecting their privacy
Facebook users are adjusting their digital behavior following the turmoil on the platform during the 2016 presidential election, according to a new survey. More than half of Facebook users in the U.S. said they’ve changed their privacy settings in the past year, according to a Pew Research Center survey released Wednesday. More than four in […]
Posted inBusiness
How Facebook was able to get your phone call and text logs
The news that Facebook’s Android app has been collecting call and text histories is yet another black eye for the social media giant. But just why was Facebook able to siphon off records of who its users were contacting — and when — in the first place? The short answer: Because Google let it. The […]
Posted inMaine
Mainers, it’s time to talk about your relationship with Facebook
Jen Goldman had begun to feel like an addict. She’d often notice her arm reaching for her phone to open Facebook, without really thinking about it. But Wednesday, a few days after news broke that the personal information and habits of up to 50 million Facebook users had been mined by the voter-profiling firm Cambridge […]